Strex's Secrets
by Unearthed-Kitty
Summary: Cecil and Kevin are getting a little tired of Lauren Mallard and StrexCorp. but things aren't quite what they seem with the company. More is wrong than just a smiling god. Written with help from tumblr user, erika-youknowtheangel. Takes place just before Episode 49 : Old Oak Doors (Part A) and contains spoilers for the podcast up until then. Reviews welcome!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: So this is my first ever fanfic...**

**A HUGE thanks to Tumblr user 'erika-youknowtheangel' for helping me out with this!**

**It's based on a little fan theory I came up with a while back...**

**So enjoy.**

**…oOo…**

Kevin had had just about enough of Lauren Mallard.

Lauren had always pushed him around, correcting him when he did not need correcting, 'helping' when help was not wanted, giving unnecessary and unwanted feedback on almost everything he says...  
And she was always there, almost as if she didn't trust him to do his job. He was Strex's best employee! He should be trusted enough to run things himself!  
He felt that maybe she just had too much power... Too much of anything is bad for you, even productivity. Too much productivity in a day and you'll be too tired for the next day. You, therefore,cannot reach your full productive potential. He remembered the pillow his grandmother had sold him. The one with "reach your full productive potential!" embroidered onto it... and how his 'wonderful' StrexPet had decided to tear it to shreds it with its adorable, gnashing teeth.

He sighed softly to himself in irritation, his obsidian-eyes narrowed as the green LED lights on his blood-spattered desk lit up beneath the animal intestines that were scattered on his desk. There was a knock on the window to the control booth. He looked up, being pulled from his world of thought and grinning the same wicked grin he always had. Lauren waved at him from the booth and held up two fingers.

Two minutes until he was on the air.

Kevin simply nodded and pulled his chair into his desk, putting on his headphones. He bent down and picked up a small black box that had been left under the desk for him. It had various swirling designs carved into the sides. he thought it was some kind of wood, but had never actually asked about it. throughout the pattern, there would be the occasional carving of a human tooth. the lid had an orange triangle with the letter 'S' in the middle.  
It was there everyday and contained the same thing each time. A syringe containing either a sick-green liquid or a deep purple liquid. but one day it had contained a thick black ooze, one that was quite painful to inject. thankfully, that only happened once.

For as long as he could remember, he'd been the recipient of this wonderful medication from StrexCorp. It was to help him to increase his productivity and keep him cheerful and motivated. He needed to inject one syringe of this unusually productive medicine first thing in the morning, just before his show, just after his show and last thing before bed. If something went wrong during his show and the effects began to wear off, one of the interns would bring him a fresh syringe during the weather for him to inject. if he was still busy talking, the intern would then inject it for him. Just a small prick on the wrist.

Kevin remembered the day he missed a dose. He'd begun to shake and everything seemed to ache somewhat. Later, he began to have unusual and horrifying visions, like a nightmare, but just a little flash every now and again, fading as soon as they'd appeared. But this happened during his show, causing him to gasp and jerk back from the mic, even mid-sentence. He had to cut to the weather a full twenty minutes early to catch up on the missed dose. It was the next day he received the black serum.  
Kevin remembered the day he missed a dose...  
He didn't want that to happen again.

He opened the delicate black box and removed the small syringe from its casing, carefully taking the clear cap from the tip of the needle. He smiled. It was the purple liquid this time. It was slightly stronger than the sick-green, but nowhere near as powerful as the black ooze.  
Thirty seconds until he was on the air.  
he located the vein on his right wrist with ease. there was a tiny scar from the many times he had used the medication. Nothing more than a pin-prick. He gently inserted the needle and injected the liquid, instantly feeling revived and quite cheerful.

Three. Two. One.

The 'ON AIR' Light came to life, figuratively, of course. Strex had made sure it wouldn't actually come to life after the incident in Night Vale two weeks ago. They'd lost three interns to that light.  
"Good afternoon, Desert bluffs!" Kevin chirped into the microphone, his sweetly sinister voice sounding as pleased as pleased could be.  
He seemed to ignore his previous irritation...  
No... Not ignore...  
Forget.

**…oOo…**

Cecil had also had enough of Lauren Mallard, but also, of StrexCorp.

Lauren. Ugh. Oh, how he hated her. He never allowed this to show, of course, that could have disastrous consequences. But she was always... cheerful. More often than not, sternly cheerful.  
Then there was her constant attitude towards his niece, Janice and his boyfriend, Carlos. Sweet, sweet Carlos. She also kept interrupting his broadcasts! Something he was not happy about at all. She could at least give him a few minutes notice or something...

He took a sip of his coffee which had been brought to him by the stations newest intern, whose name he cannot remember. The name badges were too expensive to re-print with different names each time they got a new intern, so they all just said 'Intern' in big bold text. She was short, she was not thin or fat, and Cecil was fairly certain that she was a she.

The 'ON AIR' sign came to life, literally. It grew four long, jagged, glass-like legs and a crack formed horizontally through the centre of its 'body'. Shards of glass and wires, still crackling with electricity, were moving around freely in it's newly made maw. The signs mouth opened and it let out a horrific screech, as several wires shot out of the gaping hole and snatched up the newest intern, wrapping around her waist and crushing her before tearing her body in two like she was nothing more than a soft bread roll (a wheat-free bread roll, of course.) before devouring each half separately. The sign then returned to its place on the wall in Cecil's studio, re-connecting its own wires to the open wires in the wall. Cecil made a quick mental note to close the door in future.

"Really?" He said, sighing. "Again? Lauren told me that Strex had this sign issue sorted out! Ugh. They can't do anything right... Like Steve Carlsberg."

He shuddered. Lauren Mallard and Steve Carlsberg... He couldn't stand either of them. He took out a piece of parchment and a makeshift 'not pen' and began to write a note to Strex, saying that the sign had claimed its fourth intern in the past month, and that the issue needs to be dealt with soon, as the sign would not be doing this if it was being properly fed by the station management. He stopped writing for a minute. They'd probably want to know the interns name...  
"Oh dear," Cecil murmured to himself.  
"What was that interns name? S... it started with an S... Sophie? Stephanie? Steph?"  
He repeated these names along with several other female names beginning with S. It dawned on him that she had been the only intern with a name starting with S. Perfect!

"Intern S." he finally concluded, smiling and nodding to himself, proud that he had figured it out.  
"Intern S. will be missed."

He stood up and closed his studio door, only taking a second to glance at the blood stains from Intern S' final moments.  
He sat down at his desk and took another sip of coffee before putting on his headphones.

The 'ON AIR' sign lit up, and Cecil spoke into the Mic, his voice sounding low, calm, and maybe even a little hypnotic.  
"Hello, Listeners. Before I get started, I have an announcement to make. As you all know, there have been some technical difficulties here in the station. The 'on air' sign has claimed its fourth victim. To the family of Intern S, we offer our deepest condolences... And now, the news."

**…oOo…**

Each hosts' separate shows went on fine. No accidents, no strange swirling vortexes opening in the studio walls, no pteranodon rampaging through the stations, everything was going great. But during the weather, each host noticed some interference in their own signal. There were flashes, of some other signal that was jamming their own. Neither of them knew what it was or where it was coming from at first...

"St-" it tried to break through.  
"C-" it continued.  
"Bel- ... Sm-... G-..." it was beginning to work its way through. Each host began to try to block the signal out, changing their frequency slightly to avoid it or loose it, but it didn't work.

"StrexCorp. It is everythi-" it tried again.  
Kevin was confused, Cecil was outraged.

"Why would they try to put an add right in the middle of the weather?" Kevin whispered to himself.  
"Not a very productive way to advertise..."

"First they take the small businesses," Cecil muttered through gritted teeth. "Then our studio... then Night Vale as a whole. That just isn't enough for them, is it... They wont be satisfied until they take everything, even the weather from our radio station! The station they already own!"

The weather on each station was abruptly ended by a very familiar voice coming over the air. A certain nagging, and overly cheerful voice.

"Hello, Listeners," Lauren Mallard said, her voice so sickly sweet you could almost hear her forced smile.  
"This is Lauren Mallard, vice president of StrexCorp. I would like to take this opportunity to let you all know that-"

"Lauren?" Kevin cut across her. He looked to his left. The booth was empty. "Why aren't you here in the booth?"

"You two!?" Cecil nearly shouted, furious that his show had been interrupted by them.

Lauren chuckled before she continued.  
"Boys, please, I have a very important message from StrexCorp for the listeners of the Night Vale and Desert Bluffs metropol-"

"Don't you dare," Cecil interrupted, the faint sound of a fist pounding a desk in the background. "Don't you dare try to link Night Vale with that wreck of a city!"

Kevin was shocked. Why would Cecil say that about Desert Bluffs? He remained silent.

"Cecil," Lauren's voice came across the air, cold, quiet and coated with a sickly sweet attitude that only she can pull off.  
"There is no need to be rude. Now. As I was saying, StrexCorp would like to announce that there is going to be an area-wide, free medical check-up day tomorrow in the new StrexCorp facilities built in Desert Bluffs. Night Vale citizens will be taken by helicopter or bus, depending on which they fear the most, to the facilities. This service is totally free and also mandatory.  
So be sure to clear your schedules for tomorrow."  
she paused slightly before going on.  
"and every day after then. You Will be informed when you may re-fill your schedules with necessary and productive activities."

"Indefinite time off work?" Kevin said, confused.  
"but that isn't very productive, Lauren!"

"Well, Kev,"

there was a soft growl from Kevin. Lauren did not correct herself.

"You see, if people are sick, they cannot be productive. That lack of productivity can also spread to other workers. StrexCorp simply wants to force- I mean, help everyone feel better... Even emotionally... even spiritually... everyone in the Night Vale and Desert Bluffs metropolitan area is mandated to attend. Even you two will have to go for your checkups."  
she laughed a little. it sounded light-hearted, but Cecil and Kevin knew it was nothing of the sort.

"Anyway, I'll leave you two to your shows. I'll return to the studio soon, Kev. I think I have something that belongs to you." she said, speaking a little slower towards the end.

And just like that.  
She was gone.  
Neither host could hear the other anymore and neither could their listeners.

**…oOo…**

"Night Vale," Cecil said quietly, gravely. Someone walked into the studio behind him. He paid no notice.  
"I do not know what we will face in those facilities tomorrow... but I know that it is not to be tru-" he suddenly stopped, very quickly contradicting himself as the person who had entered not moments ago, held a gun to Cecil's left temple.  
"not to be_ mistrusted._ I'm sure everything is fine! After all, a free medical check up will save us all some money!"  
the gun was lowered from Cecil's head and the StrexWorker left.

"and with that, I leave you.  
stay tuned next for Koalas casually chewing on Eucalyptus leaves, firing assault rifles and then chirping.  
Goodnight, Night Vale.  
Goodnight..."

**…oOo…**

Kevin had simply ended his show there. He wanted to get out of the station. But he didn't move from his spot. He looked down at the black box by his feet. He shouldn't feel worried. The medication was designed to make sure of that... maybe he needed a pick-me-up dose. Yeah. That's probably all. He finished typing an e-mail he had on his phone. Oddly enough, it was for Cecil. He sent the e-mail and put his phone in his pocket.

He heard clicking footsteps approaching. The door to the studio was opened and Lauren stepped inside, holding a box, like the one currently by his feet, only this one was Silver.  
"Hello again, Kev!" she said, cheerfully.  
Kevin's 'smile' faltered for a second.

Anger.

"I told you not to call me Kev, Lauren!" he snapped.  
Lauren's cheerful façade vanished. She held the silver box in one hand and closed the studio door with the other, locking it.

"Now, Kev," she said, quietly, sternly. "That is no way for a StrexCorp representative to act!"  
She almost sounded like an angry mother scolding her child, only with more hatred. No... A total absence of love.

Kevin felt himself tense as Lauren opened the box, grinning. He had never seen her grin quite like that. It was cold, uncaring, even cruel.  
Lauren reached inside and pulled out an unusual metallic collar. it had a hinge at the back and a clip at the front with a circular yellow light, currently switched off. A small red LED was beside it. Around the inside of the collar, were several needles. Not thick by any means, but they looked very strong, and unlikely to snap.  
They were about 2-3cm long, if not more. but definitely no longer than 4cm, anyway.

"StrexCorp has noticed that you haven't been as cheerful as you should be, Kev." Lauren said, her normal tone returning.  
Kevin's fists clenched, but immediately unclenched when she called him Kev.

"So we decided to get you this. Call it an early birthday present. This is a StrexCollar," she smiled, stepping towards him.  
"This wonderful little device will make sure you're getting the right dosages of your medication to keep you motivated. If you need a top up, it does it for you! It also has a tracking device attached, so you wont be able to get awa- to get lost," she quickly corrected herself.  
"like if you get caught outside in a sandstorm or a pack of wild dogs tries to take you away..."

"Why thank you, Lauren." Kevin grinned, his black eyes seemed to glisten slightly.  
"That's very thoughtful! Am I the only one getting one of these?"

"Right now, yes. But don't worry. Soon all StrexWorkers will either be taking their medicine like they should, or have one of these if they're particularly productive and mightn't have time to take it themselves. Even those folks in Night Vale... and that other radio host. Cecil... what was his last name?" she said, more to herself than anyone.

"Palmer." Kevin replied, still grinning. his grin seemed to be a permanent feature of his. It was quite unnerving until you got used to it.  
IF you got used to it.  
Some people never got the chance.  
Like the Shawns from sales in Night Vale...

"Ah yes, Cecil Palmer." Lauren repeated.  
"Thank you, Kev."

Kevin's eye twitched ever-so-slightly, only making the manic grin look more deranged.  
"Lauren, I've asked you before, and I did ask you nicely, both verbally and in written form through StrexCorp," he said, his voice suddenly growing soft, but harsh.  
"Do not. Call me 'Kev.' I'm not fond of that nickname..."

Lauren smirked a little. Kevin didn't know half of what the collar she held in her hands could do. She decided to test him. See how far he could stretch before he'd snap. Not very far, she guessed.  
"Oh, but it suits you so well, Kev! 'Kevin' just seems so formal! we're all friends here at StrexCorp, after all! it seems only right to call you /Kev/."  
she didn't get to say anymore.

Kevin stood, picking up the closest thing at hand and throwing it at her. It had happened to be a mug with sunflowers painted onto it. He'd liked that mug. oh well. Lauren stepped back, having been missed by the mug which had smashed against the wall behind her. Kevin leapt at her, but she quickly clamped the collar shut around his neck. once closed, the needles had stuck themselves into his neck. He yelped and seemed to growl slightly, his jagged teeth, like an abandoned graveyard, bared. For the first time he could remember, he felt anger. true anger. but Lauren just smirked calmly. She had nothing to worry about.

"DO NOT," Kevin shouted. The yellow light came on. the red LED beside it began to flash. The collar could tell he badly needed a dose... and a pretty big one, too. Anger is far from productivity, after all. The collar instantly knew what was to be done, and began to push a yellow liquid through the needles embedded in Kevin's neck.

"CALL.. Me..." He slowed and lowered his voice, not threateningly. Drowsily. His whole body felt heavy, a thick lethargy pinning him down. He fought against it, but just then, he didn't want to. Everything felt warm. Fuzzy. Hazy. Like he'd been barely woken from a long nap. The kind of drowsiness that makes you want to curl up and allow it to wash over you, so you may fall asleep once more.  
and that's just what happened.

His eyes closed and his knees buckled. He collapsed to the floor, a crunching sound could be heard as his head came into contact with the human teeth scattered on the floor. It had definitely been the teeth that crunched. Lauren hadn't bothered to catch him. whether he was asleep or unconscious was uncertain, but Lauren knew he'd be awake soon. She picked up the silver box that she had dropped and left the room, closing the door behind her, leaving Kevin by himself.

**…oOo…**

Cecil was about to leave the radio station when his phone buzzed in his pocket. He took it out and saw that he'd been sent an email. He opened it, at first assuming it was from Carlos or the sheriff's secret police, but it wasn't from either of them.

It was from _Kevin_.

He hesitated before reading it, but eventually decided that he might as well.

_Cecil-_

_Something's wrong here. In Night Vale, in Desert Bluffs... Strex isn't what I thought_

_Cecil, I'm not happy. I never was. They've done something to me. But I can't remember or place what or when or how it happened. I keep having dreams of Night Vale. But when I do remember anything, I get another dose of this "happy" medication._

_The high is great by the way, it's really addicting._

_But that's besides the point._

_Lauren, that... that cruel, 'happy' Lauren.. She's been planning this all along. For me. For especially you._

_Please, I'm not asking for forgiveness on what I did or said before, I'm asking for your help. For an ally. I will see you soon. It's only a matter of time before they ruin us all. I'm not sure how much longer I have before I'm caught. I don't know if I can fight once they have me under once again and I apologise in advance for anything I do because it's not really me. Please remember that. And please remember for me because I'm not sure how much longer I can hang on to the past.  
Lauren.  
__She's coming. I must go. Before she sees this. I will talk to you later. Hopefully you can help me on this._

_~Kevin._

_P.s. I honestly don't know where the scientist went. I'm sorry. I would tell you if I could. I don't know how it works. I'll help you find him though, if you wish, and if you will let me. Goodbye, dear friend_.

Cecil was shocked. Kevin, twisted Kevin, who always seemed so... "cheerful", was asking to form an alliance with _him_. This medication he mentioned didn't sound too good either... they'd be able to see each other tomorrow to talk about it anyway... He decided against replying to him through email, incase either of them were caught because of it. He was surprised that Kevin's email had gotten through to him at all. But none of that mattered right now. He had enough to worry about without this bothering him too... Carlos had been missing for a while now... and he missed him. Oh, how he missed his perfectly imperfect scientist. Cecil got into his car and drove home, turning on the radio to take his mind off of everything. The sounds of koalas filling the air around him as he made his way back to his small apartment.

**A/N: This is just Chapter one! There'll be more. I'm not sure how many more there'll be, or when they'll be uploaded, as writers block can strike at any time, but there will definitely be more to this.**

**Kevin's email was written by the fabulously talented tumblr user, 'erica-youknowtheangel'!  
Thanks again!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Chapter two is here! thanks once again to erika-youknowtheangel for helping me out!**

Cecil woke early the next morning. The bed beside him was empty. He simply lay there, staring at the ceiling. Medical checkup day. He would most likely be taken to the Bluffs by helicopter, as he liked to be around people and enjoyed travelling by bus.  
The helicopter allowed for neither of those things.

He sighed softly as he sat up, murmuring a 'good morning' to the faceless old woman. He stood up, stretching and walked to the kitchen. The faceless old woman had, very kindly, made him coffee. He smiled a bit, something he hadn't done much since Carlos left. She knew he missed him, and had been much nicer to him since. Not that she was mean or cruel, she just didn't superglue the table to the ceiling twice a week.  
once a fortnight was enough, especially considering his total lack of motivation to get the thing back down last time.

Once he'd had his cup of coffee, his mood had improved quite a bit. He never was a morning person, which is why he liked to broadcast in the evening and into the night. He began to think about what Kevin had said to him in that email. it could have been some kind of trap... but what if it wasn't? And what did he mean he was having dreams about Night Vale? Sure, it's a much better place than Desert Bluffs, but a being as vile and grotesque as him should feel right at home in that dump... So why was he so... out-of-place?

Cecil didn't know. He didn't like Kevin, not at all. But just as he had gone to see Fay, to try to help her escape from her oppressive radio job, only to discover that she was a computer and could not be saved, he knew he needed to help Kevin. Even if it was just getting rid of Lauren. He'd be killing two birds with one stone then. He would be free from her, and so would Kevin...

He looked at the clock on his wall, only to remember that time doesn't work properly in Night Vale. He had taken off the watch Carlos had given him, incase he lost it today. He'd asked the faceless old woman to hide it somewhere for him. She had done very well. He hadn't a clue where it was.

He looked out the window and saw other citizens of Night Vale, already leaving their homes, headed towards their transport to Desert Bluffs. He headed back to his room, quickly getting changed into his usual attire, before heading outside to join them.

_**~~~~~~~Three hours later~~~~~~~**_

Cecil got off of the helicopter, a little unsteadily, as he wasnt the best flier. Floating and anti-gravity enchantments were absolutely fine. But flying? No, he didn't take that well, at all. He was herded into a large unmarked warehouse. The walls were covered in blood and he felt something crunch beneath his feet. It couldn't be- yep...  
Human teeth.

He suddenly thought of Kevin. He had no idea where he might find him. Cecil squeezed his way through the crowds of people to the left, hoping he would find a group of familiar faces. There were a mix of Night Vale and Desert Bluff citizens all cramped together in the warehouse.

He saw a door, a door to what was possibly a storage room of some form. He pushed through a little more and he eventually, made it to the door. He tried the handle. Thank the imperfect heavens, it wasnt locked. He slipped inside without being seen by anyone, but then... he saw someone standing there.

There was a solid yellow light, accompanied by a small red one flashing beside it, slowly, steadily, it seemed to be mirroring the beats of the heart of an unusually calm human being. the lights were attached to some kind of collar, around a person's neck. This person was not tall or short, not thin or fat. His clothes were covered in blood and animal viscera. He looked almost exactly the same as Cecil... except for the eyes, or lack of, and the twisted grin.

"Why Hello there, friend!" Kevin said, more cheerful than ever.

Cecil couldn't help but shudder. The collar looked awful...  
and were those needles sticking into his neck?  
it must have been painful.

"Why aren't you out there enjoying the benefits of the free check up that StrexCorp was so kind to provide?" Kevin chuckled lightheartedly. it sounded false, almost forced, as most StrexCorp laughs are.

Something was wrong here. Cecil shrugged it off and tried to keep the conversation going.  
"I uhh..." he started, really not wanting to talk to Kevin. his seemingly eyeless stare was very off-putting "I got your email yesterday."

"My email?" Kevin questioned, raising an eyebrow.  
"what on earth are you-" he suddenly remembered sending the email the previous evening and laughed a bit."Oh, yes! that email. there's no need to worry about anything. I was just feeling a little bit down then. I'd missed out on my medication, you see, so I wasn't really thinking clearly! Why not just delete that silly little old email, hmm?"Kevin took a step towards Cecil, who in turn, took a step back. He remembered what Kevin had said in his email.

'I apologize in advance for anything I do because it's not really me. Please remember that.'

"Kevin," Cecil said, cautiously, watching his every move.  
"this isn't really you, is it..."  
Kevin simply grinned and chuckled a little.

"What do you mean? of course it's me! Why wouldn't it be, you silly person!"  
"No, I mean... you mentioned medication... it's made you think differently... it's made you feel differently"

"It made me better." Kevin cut across, harshly, but still smiling.

Cecil thought for a moment before speaking.  
"If the medicine is so great, then why were you worried about it? Why send me that email in the first place? What has the medication done?"

Kevin stared blankly at Cecil for a moment, unsure how to respond. Of course it was bad. It was nothing but bad news. He was puzzled.

"It's.. It's in the collar..." was all he managed to say before another dose of the medication was administered. He assumed that it was the black ooze, because it hurt.

All he could do now was silently mouth the single word.  
'Help.'

Cecil threw himself at Kevin, who was now crying out in pain as his dose was received.  
"Fight it, Kevin! Look at me and fight it!" Cecil yelled, grabbing Kevin's shaking body as he did so.  
"Look at me. Remember. Kevin. Remember who you are."

"Cecil...?" Kevin whispered quietly, cold fear filling those void-like eyes of his. "I-I... I c-can't..." he tried. The collar beeped twice very quickly and the red LED began to blink faster, flickering on and off, pulsing like the heartbeat of a panicked wild animal. StrexCorp's higher-ups were monitoring Kevin's collar. they'd noticed the sudden increase in both the strength and the amount of the dosages being received and had activated the tracker to try to fix the problem.

As more of the most recent dose hit his bloodstream, he felt calm, he wasnt afraid.  
The LED slowed. Strex's higher-ups didn't feel the need to track him down at this moment... maybe later if this happened again. Cecil noticed the calm look spread across Kevin's face and shook him, his grip tight in his shoulders.

"Dont let it get through, Kevin! Fight it off! You can do this! You have to do this!" he shouted again.  
the two were pretty close together, and Cecil could see where the collar opened. Now he just needed to get the damn thing off of Kevin... but how? those needles must have been in pretty deep... He decided to take a risk, and hit Kevin, full force, across the face, sending him stumbling backwards a few steps.

"N-now that wasn't very nice of you, C-cecil!" Kevin said, stammering like a broken machine as he struggled to decide whether to let the warm feeling of the drugs fill his body again, or to keep fighting against it.

Kevin remembered the day he missed a dose.  
He'd been scared. He'd felt cold, lost, confused, and everything hurt... mostly his eyes. his eyes seemed to have hurt the most. He didn't enjoy it. He didn't want to have to go through that again.

"Kevin!" Cecil called to him. "Just take off the collar! The metal join is on the front! Just give it a good enough pull!"

Kevin gave him a confused look in response.  
"But why? This collar is a gift! A gift from StrexCorp! Everything's so much better this way, Cecil. We don't feel upset, we're always being productive and nothing hurts!"  
this wasn't strictly true.  
everything hurts, but the drugs don't allow the sensation to be recognised as pain. something else. something _mostly_ indescribable, as the term indescribable, is a description in itself.  
He reached into his pocket and withdrew a syringe, a little larger than his usual ones, containing a thick black ooze. Cecil could have sworn it was bubbling slightly.

"I think you would be much happier with this. It can make you better, Cecil." Kevin grinned, walking towards Cecil.

"I dont need to be made better, Kevin!" Cecil retaliated. "There isn't anything wrong with me!"

"Oh come now, Cecil, there's no need to be modest. I know you miss your Scientist friend."

Cecil felt a pang of regret.  
Carlos...

"This will make all that go away," Kevin continued. "Let Strex help you forget your sorrow~" He said, gently, calmly. His soft, lilting voice almost lulling the other into a false sense of security for a moment. He hated the misery, the worry. He didn't want to endure this any longer. But the cure was not some company-made joy in a bottle (or, syringe, as his current situation happened to be.)  
It was something else.  
SomeONE else.  
The one person who convince him that everything would be alright, who could make him feel no fear, even if he were trapped in the library with hooded figures, starving librarians, wheat and its by-products, and dozens of uncovered mirrors.

The one person that made everything okay.  
Carlos.

Cecil narrowed his eyes, glaring at Kevin, clenching his teeth. Something snapped within him. He seemed to lose control of his actions. He rushed at Kevin once more, knocking the syringe from his hand. he pinned him to the wall.  
"LISTEN HERE, KEVIN." He bellowed, furious. "I WILL NEVER /EVER/ WANT TO FORGET CARLOS. I DONT WANT TO BE UPSET BUT I DO _NOT _WANT TO FORGET!" He stopped. _Forget..._  
"And I'm sure you don't want to forget anymore, either." he said quietly, but not quite calmly, exhaling a slow shaky breath, trying to regain some form of composure.

Once more, the collar decided upon another dose for Kevin. Not quite as strong this time, a dark purple liquid now. Kevin tensed and shut his eyes tightly, clenching his teeth and his fists.  
Cecil saw his chance. he quickly grabbed the collar and pulled sharply to the left and right simultaneously, opening the collar and carefully, but quickly, removing the needles from Kevin's neck. The red LED suddenly became solid. Cecil made the safe assumption that this was a bad thing. He opened the door he had come through earlier, spotting a StrexWorker without a collar. He held the collar in his hand like a frisbee. He hoped he was still as good at aiming as he used to be. He threw it skilfully, and it hit its target perfectly, latching onto and clamping shut around the workers neck. Before he could be spotted, he ducked back into the room. He turned around to see Kevin kneeling on the floor, holding his neck and moaning softly in pain.  
"Kevin?" Cecil called softly, not sure if the collar's effects had worn off or not.

"Wh... Why did you..." Kevin murmured, wincing slightly as he did.  
"Why did you get rid of... of my gift?"

Cecil knelt down so his face was at roughly the same level as Kevin's, but still keeping his distance. He couldnt fully trust him yet.

"Kevin, that was not a gift. A gift doesn't cause harm to its receiver!" He said, remembering the StrexPet he had received... and what had happened to poor Khoshekh.  
"O-or those the receiver cares about!" he finished.  
Kevin looked up. He looked alright, a bit shaken, but generally alright... but those voids he called eyes, they pierced Cecil's soul with their cold, hollow gaze.

"I-I..." Kevin began, but never finished his sentence. his gaze drifted to the syringe on the floor. it was /just/ out of his reach. If he moved, say, half an inch to the side, he could reach it. But he was in no position to try to 'help Cecil get better', he knew that much. Now that he thought about it, or at least, tried to think about it, his head was really fogged up. the sort of cheerful haze had left, leaving him confused. He had barely received a drop of the last dose the collar had tried to give. Nothing more than a taste, teasing him, taunting him.  
He wanted it.  
No.  
He _needed_ it.

Cecil was surprised at how quickly Kevin's withdrawal symptoms started. How long had he been on these drugs? Years, probably. Kevin raised his head a little, staring at the syringe, as if battling himself between moving to take it and leaving it where it was. Cecil saw this and immediately swooped in, snatching the syringe. Kevin swiped at him, trying to grab it from his hand, but he missed. He felt his own hands shaking and his empty eyes widened. shock? surprise? no... something more.  
Fear.

"Give it to me, Cecil," Kevin said, pleadingly, desperation clear on his pale, blood-spattered face.

"No, Kevin," Cecil said, quietly yet firmly. "You don't need this!"  
He saw how Kevin's gaze followed the syringe he held in his hand, like a starving librarian watching a running child through the windows of the public library. It would probably be best if it was out of his sight. Cecil picked up the plastic cover for the needle, placing it over the tip, before pocketing the syringe. He didn't want it for himself or even Kevin. If there was someone he needed to knock out, he would probably use it for that. he'd noticed that it seemed to make the receiver very relaxed. A sudden large dose could leave someone drowsy for a moment or two, so they could escape of needed.

"C-cecil!" Kevin tried to shout, instead coming out with a feeble cry. "P-please! I-I don't want to forget but- But it hurts! I dont want to feel this! I-I..." he searched his tattered mind for a reason that Cecil should give him the syringe... he couldn't think of anything.

Cecil felt sorry for his 'double', if he could even call Kevin that. How could they be doubles, yet be so different. Especially his eyes... or lack of. Cecil still couldn't tell which, and he figured it would be a bad idea to ask. Kevin was in a bad enough state as it was... He also seemed to believe that their eyes were practically identacle.

"I know it hurts, Kevin but you just have to fight against it." Cecil said, helping Kevin to his feet. he thought of something. a way to get out...  
But it was cruel.  
or maybe... cruel to be kind...  
at least, that's what he was telling himself.

"You help me, I help you. Alright?" he said, gently, attempting to calm the other with his velvety, almost hypnotic voice. Kevin looked at him questioningly.

"W-what... what do you want from me? I hope it doesn't involve s-skipping out o-on this..." he trailed off.  
A moment ago, he thought this was a great idea. a chance for all the people of Night Vale and Desert bluffs to forget their troubles and become even more productive than ever! but... no... it wasn't good... it wasn't /right./ Cecil edged closer to Kevin, who wouldn't meet his eyes. He also suddenly realised just how quiet it was... a while ago, he could hear the people that had been crammed into the giant hall, but now there was a terrible silence.

"Kevin," Cecil whispered, for fear that any loud sounds would be heard outside. "Remember what you told me yesterday in that email. Lauren has too much power, remember? You don't like her, remember?"  
Kevin gave a quick nod, but no verbal response.

"Why don't we do something about that, then? You don't like her, I most certainly do not like her..." Cecil continued.

"S-so... you helping me... would be just... being rid of Lauren?" Kevin stammered. Cecil nodded. Kevin went silent once more and he stared, mindlessly at the wall behind Cecil. he eventually nodded.

"Alright... We should try to get into the StrexCorp office buildings... they have all kinds of files there. Maybe we'll find something useful there..." Kevin said softly, seemingly having conquered his stammering. his hands still shook occasionally, though. Cecil knew he was doing his best... he'd break later, he knew it. They could only hope they had enough time before that happened.

"Okay, Kevin," Cecil said, almost smiling a little at the thought of being rid of Lauren. "First... is this room sound proof?"

Kevin beamed and nodded. "of course, silly! It's a StrexCorp interrogation room!"

"and why were you here?" Cecil asked.  
"oh, just as a precaution" Kevin smiled "incase anyone tried to step too far out of line."  
he walked over towards the door Cecil had come in through, flicking the light switch to the left of the door. Bright light flooded the room, yet Kevin didn't even squint. Cecil had to shut his eyes for a few seconds and slowly open them again, allowing them to adjust. Kevin seemed used to bright lights, which made Cecil wonder why he had been in almost total darkness before.  
The room had a hard concrete floor, which was covered in blood and teeth. Blood also was dripping from the walls, yet the framed pictures of teeth were untouched by the blood.  
there was a metal table which had been bolted to the floor, and three chairs, two on one end, one on the other. The one chair on its own was made of an uncomfortably cold looking steel and had arm and leg restraints of the same material. the other two, had no restraints, but instead had comfortable black padded seats and back-rests. Thankfully, they were alone. or at least, they were _physically_. There were two security cameras mounted on the walls. Neither Cecil or Kevin could tell if they were being watched, yet each of them feared that they were.  
Cecil shuddered. He remembered when he returned to his studio after the seemingly everlasting Company Picnic. The walls and floor had looked the same, except for, of course, the picture of the lighthouse. Kevin didn't notice this shudder, as he was too busy trying to block out unwanted and unproductive thoughts and... were they memories? or just dreams. They felt to be set in the past, so prophetic vision wouldn't be the correct term. He suddenly snapped out of this when Cecil waved a hand in front of his face.  
"Hellooo?" he called softly, curiously. Kevin swatted his hand away quickly, yet he seemed to flinch slightly at the same time. In a way, it was like a startled cat, Defensive, yet afraid.

"S-sorry..." he murmured. "I-I... I'm not sure what..." he gave up trying to explain.  
"I'll try to help you... but... I... I do need something in return."

Cecil knew exactly what he wanted, but decided to play dumb.  
"What do you mean, Kevin?" he asked, making sure it wasnt obvious that he was pretending to forget about the black syringe in his pocket. "If we get rid of Lauren altogether, we both win... equally."  
he had hoped that whatever part of strexworker what was openly at work in Kevin's mind would pick up on the 'equally' as being more productive...  
he wasnt too sure as to how their minds work, but

"Yes, but there is... one more thing. one smaller thing. one smaller thing that I need... that you have..." Kevin said, his voice a timid whisper, barely audible.

"There is?" Cecil asked in response, still playing dumb. he was surprised at how drastic the change was in Kevin's personality. one minute he was a big bundle of sickly joy with a deeply dark and twisted core, the next, he was timid and frail.  
what had Strex done to him?  
more importantly...  
before Strex came along, who was Kevin?  
did he have a family?  
friends?  
_eyes?_

"Yes," Kevin said, more assertive now than before.  
"The syringe... in your pocket..."

"Kevin, no-"  
"Cecil!" Kevin snapped. it was very unlike him to snap.

they both remained silent for a moment, both holding their tongues, figuratively, of course.  
Kevin finally decided to break the silence.  
"We should... we should get going," he said, not even considering apologising for his snapping.  
"The rest of our communities are being given their check-ups, so there wont be many StrexCorp employees outside these facilities..."

The two slowly opened the door, the only door in the room. The large featureless area of the main hall was now empty, save for the occasional drop of blood or knocked out tooth on the floor.  
Cecil was pretty sure those hadn't been there before they arrived. There were several large metallic doors on the other end of the hall. That must have been where everyone was herded. There was a small window at the top of each door, but they were tinted and also too far away for either of them to see through.

"What kind of thing do you think they're doing in those 'check-ups'?" Cecil asked, worried for his little town.

"Oh, just general medical things. nothing out of the ordinary!" Kevin chirped back in a sort of sing-song voice. The effects of his medication seemed to be ebbing and flowing...

This was going to be interesting.

**A/N: Feel free to leave a review! ^^**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Sorry this chapter took so long. I haven't had much time to write lately... not to mention, trying to keep Kevin in character, yet have him act as he would in a situation where Strex isn't right and- agh. XD It's just difficult...  
Also, does anyone want to try to hazard a guess at my age? I'm curious to see how old you lot think I am, based on what I'm writing here.  
****again, thanks to 'erika-youknowtheangel' for helping me out!**

**...oOo...**

Carlos was lonely in that other desert world. He'd been stuck there for a while now. He missed Cecil. He missed Night Vale. Occasionally he would see an old oak door appear and would rush towards it, only to have it vanish again. He'd tried jogging, power-walking (something Cecil would have loved to see him do) and even strolling towards these doors, incase his sprinting had startled them. he wouldn't really be surprised if they were sentient. He had been wandering for a while, and he was getting very lonely indeed. Also, he was wondering what other beings lived in this realm. He'd come across several sites which appeared to be campsites of some description. He had been lucky enough to find some leftover food and a flask containing some water, which he had been able to re-fill at various other campsites, which had had some water left in a small pit.  
whoever or whatever had made these campsites, were very intelligent beings.  
and there seemed to be a lot of them.  
Carlos hoped that he would be able to figure out how to leave soon.  
He wanted to go back home.  
He wanted to go back to Night Vale.

**...oOo...**

Lauren Mallard sat at her desk, writing notes down in a large, dark green covered logbook, which had to be at least an A3 sized book. They were the names and conditions of the people from Night Vale and Desert Bluffs. As she came across each citizen, she ticked off their name on one page, making sure to do the same beside their picture on the reverse side of the page, just to be sure. She had been doing this for several hours, as she had demanded that she do it alone, to make sure it was done right...  
at least, that's what she told everyone.  
there were certain things in those lists that only she should see.

She had nearly finished now, but here were a few names that caused her some trouble.  
Carlos... Carlos was one of them. He was stuck in that other desert world, and couldn't be given his 'medical checkup'  
Kevin... Kevin hadn't shown up for his checkup. He was listed as having arrived and was placed on duty in the interrogation room...  
And Cecil... he too had arrived, but had vanished.

Lauren let out a low snarl.  
"Those three..." she murmured to herself. "They were always trouble... and now Kevin and Cecil are /both/ unaccounted for... If they're together... no."  
She seemed to relax, putting her pen down on her desk again.

"they wouldn't be..." she continued to herself. "We made sure they wouldn't want to be together... but still... why wouldn't Kevin show up?"  
she opened up her laptop which sat on her mahogany desk, next to all the books and files, opening a complex looking program. Kevin's collar had a tracking device built into it, so StrexCorp could know where he was at all times. She typed his name into the search bar. His heart rate, his current blood pressure, his mood, the current dosage rate and strength and his location popped up on the screen.  
or rather, the details of the person who had his _collar._

The computer claimed that he was in large hall, where those who had already received checkups had been placed, unless they resisted treatment or even diagnosis.  
"That's impossible," Lauren said, opening a second window on the program. "There's no record of him even being given his checkup..."

She typed in her security code, which was over fifteen digits long, and pulled up the security footage of the room Kevin was supposedly in. The room was pretty packed, but it isn't difficult to spot a mechanical collar with two lights and a tracker.  
She saw the blinking red light in the crowd and zoomed in on the StrexWorker that was wearing it.  
it was an employee of StrexCorp, but it was not Kevin. It was a young woman, about 5"4' with pale skin and long auburn hair.

"What!?" Lauren shouted. "How did he- Aargh!" She stood up and ran to her office door, swinging it open and shouting into the corridor.  
"LOCKDOWN THE FACILITY. KEVIN TOOK OFF HIS COLLAR! FIND HIM! AND CECIL PALMER TOO!"  
Several StrexCorp employees jumped at the sudden bellowing, but immediately responded with a curt "Yes, Ms. Mallard!" before speeding off to a control room.  
"this is bad," she murmured to herself "Oh smiling god this is bad... If the two of them /are/ together..."  
she trailed off, closing her office door and sinking into her chair, staring blankly at her laptop screen, too lost in thought to even acknowledge its presence. A thought struck her and her blank expression slowly turned to a smirk, then a smile, then a somewhat wider smile, and finally a deranged, bloody grin.  
They wouldn't be able to get into any major StrexCorp files. Maybe if they got lucky they'd find drafts for a new poster or something. Neither of them had the computer skills necessary to get into the more high-security files...  
Her grin faltered.  
Carlos.  
The oak doors keep appearing and disappearing at random intervals.  
If Cecil were to somehow get through and find Carlos...  
that could be disastrous for her.  
but...  
If _she_ were to stop that from happening...  
to maybe find Carlos first...  
Well, that would change everything.  
the twisted grin returned to her face, her mouth widening to almost cartoonish lengths.  
Turning to her laptop once more, she laughed softly to herself.  
It was a cruel, heartless laugh.

**...oOo...**

The StrexWorker across from Cecil and Kevin turned away for a moment. seeing a chance to get out, were about to run for the door, but great steel barriers suddenly slammed down over the doors and windows. The StrexWorker whipped back around, but the door was closed just before either radio host could be seen.  
"What's going on?" Cecil whispered quickly to Kevin, who also seemed a little nervous.

"The building's been locked down..." the blood-covered double replied.  
"One of Strex's higher-ups must feel that something's wrong... Or that..." he trailed off, eyes slowly widening as he suddenly realised what this could mean.

"That...?" Cecil prompted.  
Kevin took a second to reply.

"That employees are not being productive enough... That _I'm_ not being productive enough..." Kevin said, his worry clear not only on his face, but in his voice.

They heard a loud, high-pitched beeping from small but powerful speakers mounted on the was above and Kevin froze, hollow eyes opened wide. Cecil almost felt sick looking into those things, they reminded him too much of the endless void that had long since devoured their existence. Not even the glow cloud _**Aalllll haaaiiillll...**_ with its strongly glowing and constantly changing colours, could shine through the endless expanse. Shifting his gaze slightly to the others scarred cheeks, which barely held the memory of his gruesome smile, he spoke quietly.

"Kevin, What does Strex do when people aren't being productive?" he asked slowly, calmly, but firmly, trying to seem stronger than Kevin in a sense, more powerful even when alone.

**...oOo...**

_"We've activated it, Ms Mallard. It should take effect very soon."  
"Wonderful. Just one round should be enough. Switch it off after that. I don't want to be too rough yet... give him a chance to willingly obey."_

**...oOo...**

Kevin saw a flash of something in his head, very brief, came and went in a moment, but the in-between, however brief, was _painful._ His hands rushed to either side of his head and his eyes shut tightly.  
"No!" he murmured quickly, almost pleadingly. but to whom was he pleading? and for what?  
"No no no no!" his voice raised in volume and urgency. he hated what he was seeing. he wasn't supposed to remember! he didn't WANT to remember!

_the strange metal chair in the cold room_

Cecil placed his hands on Kevin's shoulders, but he was shaken off. After Kevin had stumbled and fallen, assuming the foetal position on his side on the cold concrete floor, Cecil went back to his attempts to get through to the other.  
"Kevin!"

"Let me go! Please! Just let me go!"

_metal restraints_

"Fight against whatever it is Kevin! listen to me!"

_A woman with a taser in one hand and a small strange disk in the other_

"Don't do this! please! Just let me go"

t_he crackle of electricity and a great searing pain._

Kevin went quiet, his hands covering his face. Cecil didn't know of he was crying or not. when Kevin removed his hands, there was an unusual ooze running down his cheeks. It was coloured like blood that was slightly more transparent than it should have been, but seemed to have the consistency of slightly runny (but bloody) maple syrup. Were these tears? was it blood? was it actually off-colour syrup? Cecil didn't know.

Footsteps.  
Someone was approaching the room.

"Kevin get up!" Cecil whispered, but Kevin was already on his feet.  
the 'tears' were gone and his manic grin was back.  
before Cecil could do anything to stop him, Kevin threw him into the steel chair and clamped shut the restraints, Cecil let out a yelp and Kevin took out a small tidy looking knife. it looked like it hadn't been used before, shiny and clean.  
there was a knock on the door.

"Yesss?" Kevin called in his softer, but darker voice, not breaking eye-contact with Cecil.  
the door opened and a short strexCorp Employee walked in.

"Is everything alright in here Kevin?" the Strexworker asked, calmly. "The facility just went into lockdown, and you know the drill when that happens. I check all the rooms, deal with any issues quickly, etc. etc."

"Oh yes," Kevin sighed happily. "Everything's going just fine here. Just having a little chat with my _wonderful_ friend here." he added with a soft chuckle. his smile widening and widening. Cecil just stayed silent, pretending Kevin had broken him down spiritually or something of that nature, hoping beyond hope that Kevin was only pretending...

The Strexworker nodded without giving a verbal response and left the room. Kevin's smile didn't change, but he opened Cecil's restraints.  
"Sorry about that, friend" he whispered.  
"It was the most productive thing to do."

Even though Cecil had recently developed a hatred for the word "productive", he nodded and stood up, massaging his wrists, as the restraints had been very tight.  
"are... are you okay?" Cecil asked, not wanting to seem like he cared too much about Kevin. Kevin was his means of escape, and a victim of StrexCorp. Nothing more than that.  
Kevin nodded uneasily, his grin stiff, like he had simply realised he was smiling and forced his muscles to freeze in that position. as unnatural as StrexCorp smiles are, this was even more so.  
"Of course, Cecil." he chirped slightly. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"You were... Nevermind." Cecil finally murmured. "but could you maybe give me a warning before you do that in future? you really startled me there..."

"I'm afraid I can't promise you that, Cecil" the other replied, his smile still rigid.  
_forget._ he willed to himself silently in his mind.  
_remember that another day. if at all._

Kevin folded and put away his knife. Cecil made a mental note to be very careful, as he had the syringe of StrexMedications that Kevin craved so badly, and would probably soon be willing to do anything to get it from him.

the high pitched beeping had stopped. what _was_ that? It was fairly obvious that it wasn't good, whatever it was.

"We need to get out of here," Cecil said quietly. "We'll never get our job done if we just stay in here the whole time."

"of course," Kevin said, his voice somewhere between soft talking and whispering. "but we'll need a cover-up story... I could be taking you to get some medication... but you'll need a proper smile if they're going to believe you..."

"What do you mean a _proper_ smile?" Cecil asked cautiously suddenly remembering that Kevin had a knife in his pocket and could easily give him one of those gory smiles that all StrexCorp employees wear with such pride.

Kevin simply chuckled and walked towards Cecil, not taking out the knife again, but his hands were outstretched. Cecil backed away, not knowing what exactly Kevin wanted to do to him.  
"Kevin! Stop! I refuse to let you cut a smile into my face! I-" Cecil stopped suddenly when Kevin placed his hands on either side of his face, using his thumbs to, rather roughly, guide the corners of his mouth upwards and outwards to the point where Cecil thought his lips might split and start bleeding.

"Now," Kevin purred, "Can you hold that smile for me? It's not the best of smiles but... it should do the job for now."

Kevin removed his hands from Cecil's face, who was struggling to keep his face in the position Kevin had forced it into. he hoped he wouldn't have to hold it for very long.

"This is extremely painful," Cecil managed to say through gritted teeth, his face already beginning to cramp. "do I need to hold it exactly like this?"

Kevin nodded, sighing a little, his own grin not letting up. "Yes, of course. That's not even a proper smile... if you just let me help you _properly_ I could-"

"No no no," Cecil quickly interrupted, shaking his head a little. "I'll manage... if that's the only other option, I'll manage."

"Alright... maybe later you'll change your mind."

"Can I stop now? Or do I need to keep holding this?"

Kevin looked slightly annoyed, or crazed. it was really hard to read his face, due to his constant grin and void-like eyes. There wasn't very much that Cecil could even _try_ to read.

"Alright, fine." He said, a little irritably. "if smiling is that difficult, you can stop for now... but you'll have to be able to smile later..."

Cecil relaxed the muscles in his face, massaging his jaw for a moment with his hands, wincing slightly as he did so. Kevin ignored him, arms folded across his chest.

"So, Kevin," Cecil said once his face regained some feeling. "Do you know your way around this building fairly well?"

Kevin looked at Cecil as if he had lost his mind.  
"of course, Cecil! All StrexCorp employees are made memorise the plans of each building incase we need to help out in another building."

"Good, because we'll need to figure out how to get out of this insane asylum."

"Oh come now, Cecil, it isn't all that bad."

"Kevin! They're... I don't know what they're doing, but Strex has everyone from both of our towns here!"

"Yes but..."  
Kevin stopped.

there was that unease again. StrexCorp was everything to him, but it all seemed so wrong. He waved a hand dismissively, as if to banish his own thoughts.  
"Anyway, we should probably get out. we're not getting any work done here. I-"

A small four-note jingle came through the speakers, echoing through the halls outside that small interrogation room, followed by a harsh, painfully cheerful voice.

"Hello StrexCorp employees!" Lauren chirped, her sickly sweet tones making Cecil want to gag out of both fear and disgust.  
"I hope you're all enjoying yourselves here at our wonderful facility. but I'm here specifically to give a very special message to two of our wondrous employees! Cecil Palmer and Kevin !"

Kevin and Cecil froze. what could she want? What was she up to?

"First, Cecil." she continued "There's a very special guest here in my office! It was very good of him to decide to join us today, especially since he's been so busy for the past while, barely even finding time to call you!"

Cecil's jaw dropped, he wanted to shout, he wanted to scream, but he simply stood there, mouth open like a fish out of water gasping, hoping that water would soon fill its gills once more, and that these moments would not be its last.

"We're going to give him a wonderful new smile, and think you should come along to see! Come along and watch your scientist truly become perfect."  
Her voice slowed towards the end, you could almost hear her cruel smile.

Cecil fell to his knees, staring in horror at the ground beneath him. _they have Carlos._ was all he could think._ oh masters of us all, no, they have Carlos. they have him and they're going to hurt him. _Cecil's fear turned into a gripping terror which wrapped around him like a great fist, crushing him, and crushing him, and crushing him. he was able to breathe, but he dared not even try.

"And Kev," Lauren continued, sadly, lowly, disappointedly. like a mother scolding her child... with an absence of love, just as before.  
"Your actions have become frighteningly unproductive as of late... we got you that lovely StrexCollar and you just... you just got rid of it. we think you should come see Carlos get his new smile too... maybe we can freshen up that smile of yours too while we're at it..."

Kevin tensed as each word hit him. he wasn't being productive? But of course he was! He was always being productive... Wasn't he?  
He _was_ being productive, of course he was... he had to be! being unproductive was the worst thing he could do...

"Thank you!" Lauren chirped once more into the microphone. there was a click as her mic was switched off, and the facility was plunged into a deathly silence.

"They have him, they have Carlos, my perfect perfect Carlos." Cecil murmured to himself, over and over, going from staring at the floor to having his eyes shut tight, trying to block out this horrifying reality.

"I'm not being productive...?" Kevin whispered softly, hollow eyes wide in horror.

everything was wrong.

Strex had Carlos, Kevin felt he had lost everything in being unproductive.

_'but one of these problems can be fixed now,'_ Kevin thought to himself, looking down at Cecil, his entire body frozen. Cecil still had that syringe.

Cecil kept his eyes shut tight.  
"It's okay, it's okay, it's okay," he whispered repeatedly to himself. he didn't acknowledge anything but his own misery and fear until he felt a great force collide with him, sending him sprawling. his eyes shot open to see Kevin, empty eyes wide and desperate, frantically trying to get at his pocket.

_the syringe._

Cecil kicked Kevin back, not too roughly so he wouldn't hurt him, it was mostly to get him off.

"Kevin-" Cecil began, but Kevin cut across him.

"Give it to me, Cecil!" He shouted desperately, throwing himself back at Cecil, trying to at least knock the plastic cover off the needle. if he could manage that, and if the tip stuck out through the material of Cecil's pocket, Kevin should be able to quickly get a drop, even just the tiniest little bit of the drug.

he wanted to be productive again.

_he needed it._

Cecil fell back as Kevin landed on top of him. he barely managed to get him off, but Kevin just came running back, his arms a blur as he tried to punch Cecil in the face, or the gut, or anywhere he could, but Cecil managed

**thwack.**

Kevin's fist finally managed to make contact with Cecil's face. He was about to go in for another hit, but Cecil was curled up in a ball, covering his face with his hands... and whimpering.

Was... was he crying?

**A/N: Okay, before I continue with this fanfic, I'd just like to make it known that this fanfiction is based on a theory I came up with, a really good one, in my opinion, and everything seemed to fit, and there were loads of underlying meanings within night vale episodes.**

**and that whole theory was blown RIGHT out of the water when episode 53: the september monologues came out...**

**but I'm still going to continue as if that episode didn't happen.**

**because let's be honest. no weather, next to no Cecil, no 'goodnight night vale, goodnight' and no proverb.**  
**It's difficult to accept that such a thing happened anyway, right? XD**

**but yes, from here on, please ignore the fact that it goes totally against what is now (unfortunately for me) canon.**


End file.
